The next time you land in London, how would you like to ditch your bags at the airport to get in a little extra sight-seeing and have them waiting for you at your hotel? Or, leave your bags behind at the hotel and have them meet you at the airport? Or maybe you have some early or last-minute meetings, and you don’t feel like wrestling your bags for the next six hours.
Baggage Claim Carousel at Heathrow. Wouldn’t it be nice to skip the wait?
Heathrow Airport and Portr have combined forces to allow passengers same-day, baggage-free travel to or from the airport to any London address. They call it AirPortr, and although it’s currently the only service they offer, the company may expand beyond airport delivery services.
Chris Walsh, director and head of customer experience at Portr, explains. “Our vision is to fundamentally change how people travel, putting them back in control of their own agenda rather than burdensome baggage dictating their itinerary. AirPortr is all about increasing the efficiency of your time; you know that your bags are being securely delivered, which leaves you to make the most of your first or last day in London. We like to call it ‘Luggage Freedom.'”
Billed as “Uber for your luggage,” two pieces of luggage of any size or weight can be delivered to any hotel, office, or residential address in London, or to either Gatwick or London City airport for just £30, or about $43. Reservations can be made from any mobile device and AirPortr concierge personnel are not chained to a service desk at Heathrow. This allows AirPortr’s staff to personally meet you to oversee handoffs at multiple locations within the terminal. All bags are sealed and insured and AirPortr offers real-time GPS tracking. The service also sends status updates to its users at every stage of the luggage transfer until the items arrive at their intended destination.
AirPortr was set up by three frustrated frequent flyers who shared a vision to create and shape a better way to travel. Operational since 2014, it is the first service of its kind in Europe. AirPortr has delivered thousands of bags to date, and boasts a 100 percent customer satisfaction record.
Would you use a service like this, especially if you could get it in other cities? What kinds of luggage services would you like to see? Leave us your ideas in the comments section or on our Facebook page.
Photo credit: Facial Expression (Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons)